


Of Seafoam and Amber Eyes

by blondekaspbrak



Category: IT - Stephen King
Genre: Fluff, Hanbrough, M/M, Oneshot, Side Stanpat, kiss, mermaid au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-20
Updated: 2019-12-20
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:13:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21872014
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blondekaspbrak/pseuds/blondekaspbrak
Summary: But then he feels something grabbing onto his ankle and he jumps, yanking his legs out of the water. He shuffles back on the dock, and peers over to see the source of his fright. His eyes widen at the sight of two deep brown eyes staring back at him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."
Relationships: Bill Denbrough/Mike Hanlon, Patricia Blum Uris/Stanley Uris
Comments: 3
Kudos: 31
Collections: IT Fandom Secret Santa 2019





	Of Seafoam and Amber Eyes

**Author's Note:**

> this is my gift for honkhonkrichard on tumblr for the itfandomprompts secret santa 2019 event! i hope i was able to deliver something that you enjoy reading! ♡

“Okay, Bill, we're gonna head back to the house. The others will be wondering where we are, and we need to make sure that Richie hasn't corrupted the baby. Are you coming?" Stan stands up from the dock, dusting off his slacks absentmindedly and helping Patty up off of the wooden boards. The sun's halfway set already and the temperature's dropping slightly as the stars begin to come out of hiding.

"No, I think I'm going to s-stay out a little longer. Don't worry, you guys cuh-can go back, I won't be out too la-late." Bill reassures them, and Stan nods, taking Patty's hand and leading her away, off the dock to take the short walk back to the house.

Bill decides to take the alone time to think, because as much as he loves his friends, they get each other excited, not leaving much room for real thinking time. It's the first time in a really long time that he's been at Richie's beach house as a single man. In previous years, he's always brought Audra with him to Richie's beach house. She's a lovely lady, but Bill just wasn't sure he felt completely like they were right for one another, so it ended. It's not that he misses being in a relationship with her, it's just really strange to break the routine and not be with her for a tradition.

It's been nearly half a year since they broke up, and he's been dating again as of recent. It's nothing too serious, and he's enjoying meeting new people, but nothing's really stuck yet. That's okay, though, he's not expecting anything to happen soon. Maybe he doesn't feel great about being the only one single at the summer house, but he'll get used to it.

He's secretly a tiny bit envious of Stan and Patty, they love each other so much. They've just had a baby, and Bill thinks that the last time he saw them this happy was on their wedding day. He remembers it fondly, all seven of the losers and Patty had cried that day, gotten drunk and cried some more. It was a great day, much like the day their son, Elio, was born. He hopes some day he can be as happy as them.

Bill dips his feet in the water, and winces quietly at the temperature, but he doesn't pull away. The water's refreshing, even if it's quite cold, and for a minute he considers slipping into the water, but he's already dried off from being in earlier. His pale skin is illuminated by the glow of the ivory marble in the sky. There's something about the sight that makes him feel a certain way, like reality's altered. It feels like he's the only person in the world —like it's just him and the moon.

He's brought out of his thoughts when something brushes against his ankle, ever so slightly, but enough for him to notice it. He plants his hands on either side of him on the pier to secure himself, and he looks over, down into the water, to find nothing. He squints, sure that he had felt something, but chalks it up to it being that he must've grazed his foot against the support beam under the dock or that it's a fish swimming where he can't see it.

Well, that's what Bill assumes for the next few minutes as he sits in a perfect silence, kicking his feet gently in and out of the frigid water. But then he feels something grabbing onto his ankle and he jumps, yanking his legs out of the water. He shuffles back on the dock, and peers over to see the source of his fright. His eyes widen at the sight of two deep brown eyes staring back at him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." 

Bill doesn't say anything, and the person continues, "Are you okay?"

"I, uh, yeah, I'm fuh-fine." Bill stammers, "Sorry, who are you?" He asks wearily, and the man in the water moves a little closer, smiling in what Bill assumes is an attempt to make sure Bill knows that he isn't intending to cause harm.

"I'm Mike, what's your name?" Mike's voice is gentle, and he has kind features, big mahogany toned eyes and an endearingly lopsided smile. Bill relaxes, sits back down, cross-legged on the dock. Mike takes this as a sign that Bill doesn't feel threatened by him, and a look of relief passes over his face.

"I'm Bill. Are you here with anyone?" Bill looks around, there's no one in close proximity, and Mike laughs softly, shaking his head.

"Oh, no, I'm by myself." Mike tells him, and Bill nods silently, "Is this your first time here?"

He shakes his head, "My friend has a house up here and we always come for the Summer. Is this _your_ first time?"

A look comes over Mike's face, and he smiles slightly, "No, I'm here all the time, I live here. I don't really have the opportunity to go anywhere else." Bill looks like he's about to ask, and Mike beats him to it, glancing around to make sure no one's within earshot or sight of them. He dives down deeper into the water, head first, and that's when Bill sees it —a tail.

Mike breaks through the water again, staring up at Bill, who's standing up on the dock, and backing off of it, coming around the side and down onto the sand. He wades into the water, disregarding the temperature and approaching Mike, who looks surprised. "I assumed you would run away."

Bill shakes his head, trying to find the right words, "No, I, uh, I-I'm just shuh-shocked, I th-think." Mike nods, doesn't say anything, just gives Bill a minute to think. "Ah-Are there others?"

"Yeah, there is, they stay down there, though." He gestures out to the large expanse of water stretching across the horizon. "They don't like it up here, they're scared of humans. It's only because they've never came up here, though. All they've heard is stories, but I don't think there's anything to be scared of." Mike momentarily gives Bill a weary look, "Is there?"

"N-No, of course not. I'm not guh-gonna hurt you. This is just really uh-unexpected. Do you usually show people that you're here, or...?"

Mike swims closer, simpering soft-heartedly, "I don't, I usually don't come this close to people at all, I just look from a distance. But you looked like you needed a distraction from whatever was making you upset." Bill averts his eyes, letting out a low murmur of 'oh', and Mike reaches out, his fingers ghosting over Bill's arm, giving rise to goosebumps on his skin. "Speaking of, what was making you so sad? I know you said you're fine, but it doesn't look like you are."

The sea's shallow enough where they are that Bill can sit down on the sand beneath it, and he buries his hands into the sand, they sink in easily due to the water, and he closes his fists around small heaps of the sand. "I can't buh-believe I'm telling this to a st-stranger, but I don't really f-fuh-feel like talking to anyone else about this so here goes, I guess. My girlfriend —well ex-girlfriend —and I broke up earlier this year ah-and we've come here t-t-tuh-together every year since we got together. I guess it just feels different n-now that she isn't here, I don't kn-know." Mike frowns, and Bill feels compelled to ask, "Do yuh-you guys date? Or ha-have partners or whatever?"

The merman laughs, all breathy and light, and Bill grimaces, shaking his head at himself. "Guh-God, sorry, that was such a stupid question. Of course you guys date." He face begins to bloom red, the shade much like that of the eventide that Bill witnessed earlier that evening with Patty and Stan.

"It's okay, I understand that this is really weird. I'd probably ask that too if it were the other way around." Mike reassures him, lying back in the water, lustrous azure tail flicking up and breaking through the liquid surface gracefully as he did so. He turns his head to Bill, who's still sitting near him, watching and waiting for him to talk again. "I'm sorry about your break up, though. If you don't mind that I'm asking, why did you break up?"

Bill shrugs half-heartedly, removing one hand from the sand and trailing his fingers along the surface of the water, "We were good together, buh-but it wasn't really in the w-way that we thought. We started dating a few years ago while we were still in c-c-college and it was rea-really fun but as time went on I k-kind of realised that we worked better as friends? It just d-didn't really feel romantic, something was m-mih-missing. We ended it because Audra said she felt the same way."

"What do you think was missing?"

Bill furrows his eyebrows, smiles a little, "I'm not sure, I guess I'll know whenever I find it." There's a moment of silence, and then Bill speaks again, "So, what's d-d-dating like for you?" 

"Well, I suppose I don't really date. It's not like I haven't had opportunities or anything, I guess I just don't want to live like the rest of them down there. It's so boring. And I don't feel like I really have a mutual understanding with the others in my area, I think differently and they don't really approve." Mike sighs, "That's why I spend so much of my time up here. My parents are great, I love them so much, but I don't think they really get why I want change."

"I don't think m-my parents really uh-understood me either."

"Yeah?"

Bill hums, "My little brother went m-missing for a year when I was thirteen. I must've spent the entire t-time trying to figure out where he could've gone, how we could find hi-him and bring him home. My parents weren't having any of it. They kept insisting that I le-leave it alone, accept that Georgie was guh-gone. I couldn't uh-understand why they wanted to stop looking, it made me angry, and really confused. They were quite cold ah-after Georgie disappeared."

"What happened? To Georgie?"

"He was found a year later," Bill's lips curve upwards at the thought of his brother, "I don't think he remembers whatever happened in the time that he was away, he's absolutely fine now. He's nineteen, and going to school in New York. Mike adjusts in the water, lying on his front, his forearms on the sand supporting him. "That's great, I'm glad. It seems like you love him a lot."

The writer nods, "I know a lot of siblings don't get along, but Georgie and I always huh-have. It was really rough when he went m-missing, sometimes I think I took it harder than my parents did. I'm so grateful that he's alive right now, all of the time I spent wondering wh-where he was and what had happened t-to him was pretty torturous and now that I kn-know that he's safe at college, I feel like I can relax."

Mike glides into close proximity, taking Bill's hand into his and patting it gently with the other. He doesn't say anything, just flashes Bill a lopsided beam, pearly white teeth on show and Bill thinks that he can actually feel his heart rate gradually slowing, he can pinpoint the exact moment when the tension floods out of him and he relaxes. The author doesn't say anything either, just simpers back in return, feeling a sudden relief at knowing that he's finally told someone what’s been on his mind.

He lets Mike come closer.

*:･ﾟ✧༄

"He sounds absolutely crazy."

"Oh, yeah, one-hundred p-percent, Richie's definitely a dumbass." Bill chuckles, "He pushed our friend, Eddie, out of a tree in m-middle school, Eddie was totally fine afterwards and Rih-Richie started crying because he felt so bad." Mike throws his head back, laughs from his chest, and the way it sounds makes Bill's stomach swoop momentarily, causing him to squint and then quickly recompose himself before Mike notices. "We all love h-him though, he's a good guy regardless of all the stupid sh-shit he does."

Mike's lying beside him, resting his head on his forearms, he turns his head to look at Bill, resting his cheek on his arm. "Your friends are amazing, and it sounds like you're all so close with each other. I wish I had friends like that."

"W-Well," Bill slowly extends his arm out to curl his hand around Mike's, "We're friends now, right?"

The merman shifts his eyes, seemingly bashful, and nods, looking back up at him and flashing that winning smile once more. "Yeah, I guess we are. Thank you, I don't really have a lot of friends or others around me who take the time to get to know me. You're the first in a long time."

Bill opens his mouth to respond, but he's silenced by a voice calling in the near distance. _"Bill? Bill! Are you here?“_

"Eddie?" He murmurs, perplexed, and turns back around to Mike. Eddie's voice is drawing closer and Mike looks panicked. He swiftly moves from his lying position and shuffles closer to Bill, resting a rough hand on his flushed cheek.

"This was really fun, Bill, thank you." His eyes flick down momentarily, and he surges in quickly but gently, pressing a kiss to his mouth and pulling away just as fast, leaving Bill to wonder if he had simply imagined it. He can't find the right words, just stares wide-eyed at Mike, who has the ghost of a smile on his mouth.

Eddie's voice beckons to Bill and he swivels around to see him jogging over. He turns back, to say goodbye to Mike, only to find that he's gone. "Bill! What are you doing out here?"

"Uh, I guess I juh-just lost track of time. Speaking of, wh-what time actually is it?" Bill asks, looking back out to the sea, in hopes of catching a glimpse of Mike. There's nothing but the sea foam and the water crashing against the rocks.

"It's four o'clock! I woke up to get some water and I walked by your room and saw that you hadn't came back. Jeez, Bill, warn us if you plan on staying out this late." Eddie shakes his inhaler, holds it between his lips and presses the trigger.

"I'm sorry, Eddie, I didn't h-have my phone with me and I didn't think I’d be stay out this late. Are yuh-you okay?" 

"I'm fine, Bill, are you? I've noticed that you've been kind of down since we got here, if it's because of everything with Audra, we're all here for you, you know?" Eddie sits down on the sand next to Bill, and does his best to avoid the tide coming in. 

Bill smiles to himself, nodding, "I know, Eddie, thank you." The water crests against a group of rocks, and he wonders if Mike is still watching from a distance, “I think I’m going to be okay.” He whispers, sounds so sure of himself that even he’s taken aback.

“I’m glad, Bill. What’s changed?” Eddie’s voice comes from behind him, and the blue-eyed man sinks his hand into the sand again, thinks about tomorrow, thinks about the look in Mike’s eyes just a moment before he kissed him. He hopes he’ll see Mike tomorrow, he wants to come back and talk to him again, maybe kiss him again.

“I guess I’ve just had a lot of t-time to think things over while I’ve been out here. The view really put th-things into perspective for muh-me. I think I’ll cuh-come back tomorrow, it’s nice h-here.”


End file.
